The lack of urgency is deeply worrying
The Minister for Health must clarify when the monkeypox vaccination programme will be rolled out, according to Social Democrats Health Spokesperson Róisín Shortall.
“Last week, Health Minister Stephen Donnelly announced that a monkeypox vaccination programme, targeted at individuals at high risk, would be rolled out. However, there is a complete absence of information about when this is likely to happen.
“The lack of urgency about addressing, what the WHO have called a global health emergency, is deeply worrying. We have a vaccine that is effective against monkeypox – but communities most at risk have no idea about how they can be inoculated. This confusion is causing a huge amount of concern and frustration.
“In contrast, France has already administered 42,000 doses of the vaccine while a dedicated vaccination centre was opened in Paris this week. The UK announced its vaccination programme as far back as June.
“There have now been 97 confirmed cases of monkeypox in Ireland and that number is bound to increase in the coming days and weeks. The Minister must clarify when the vaccination programme, announced last week, will begin.”
4 August, 2022
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